The Great Equestrian Revolt
by MythieWriter
Summary: Dining Armour has been nothing but a bib her whole life. She doesn't even know her real name, nor has she met her real parents. The Princess have ruled her life much as they had the rest of their kingdom; with an iron hoof. When Equestria goes into revolt, can Dining find the courage to defy the princes, or will she stay their royal bib forever?
1. My Little Kidnapping

_Plop!_

Another piece of rancid meat fell onto my wings.

_The princes sure are messy eaters,_ I thought to myself. But of course I didn't say a word; if I did I would run the risk of execution.

Since I was a young filly this was the only world I'd known. A world where only three things remained constant.

1) I was Dining Armour, the personal bib of the princes.

2) My white wings were always stained red with other ponies' blood.

3) The princes were our supreme and ever-present rulers who could not be overthrown or influenced in any positive way.

Perhaps I should explain a bit.

Long ago, Equestria was ruled by a kind and gentle leader, Queen Eris. No one knows where she went or why, but when she disappeared her three closest relatives took over her throne.

For a while life remained normal and cheery, but it slowly deteriorated into chaos and madness. The princes became dictators rather than beloved royals and killed everypony who dared stand against them.

I was a filly when the first real uprising began. School was halfway over when the entire world went pitch black. The princes had cut off all electricity and set both the moon and the sun. It was high noon but the sky would lead you to believe it was a moonless midnight.

For a while ponies remained in revolt, lighting fires and using magic to guide their way and carry out attacks. But we could only last so long with so little food.

Prince Solaris was the most prominent ruler. He controls the sun, without which we cannot grow food to survive. He almost never set it for too terribly long though. All three lords wanted us to be as fat as possible.

They'd acquired a taste for pony meat, and I was their bib.

It wasn't actually that bad of a job. Sure my wings were hopelessly stained, but I was never chosen as their next meal and I lived in the comfort of the castle. My only wish was that I'd known my parents, that I'd known my real name….

_That's not important,_ I thought, shaking my head. _That's the past, it's over now. Dining Armour is as good a name as any and Solaris is the only father I needed growing up._ Sighing, I turned my attention back to the dinner. Mine sat beside me, a simple daisy salad as ordered. I was the only one out of the three bib ponies who didn't share the princes' tastes. The others' wings were not stained like mine; they licked theirs clean after every meal.

The dinner was over before I knew it and I was off to try washing the blood off once again. Looking in the mirror was always hard. The only thing I knew about my parents was that they died fighting the princes' power and reign, and there I sat waiting on their every whim.

"I'm a disgrace," I whispered, breaking my reflection in the water violently with a wing. As usual, no matter how hard I scrubbed, my wings stayed the same dreadful red.

Feeling a traitor and disgusting, I made my way to my chambers. The long corridor always unnerved me for some reason, but it was the quickest way.

I encountered a very drunk soldier on the way there. He tried to stop me and flirt but one good slap across the snout with a blood-stained wing was enough to tell him I wasn't in the mood to deal with him. He stepped back, suddenly embarrassed, and let me pass.

When I reached my chambers I was shocked to find my simple twin-sized bed gone, replaced by a luxurious queen bed. In disbelief, I went out and double checked the room number and the name below it. Sure enough I was in the right place.

"He…Hello? Is anypony there?" I called, remembering horrible rumors about similar situations. One of the princes starts leaving mysterious gifts to beautiful young mares, but never shows himself until a bottle of wine is left. The next day the mare wakes up with a hangover and is carrying a bastard child.

Walking toward my bed cautiously, I notice that the sheets are a dark, velvety purple. Then I see a note on the pillow. Scared, I walked over to read it.

_ Dearest Dining,_

_I apologize for the suddenness of my actions, but I thought you deserved a better mattress than that rock you had before. You'll find this one makes for a better night's sleep, and you'll need all the rest you can get tonight. Don't ask why, just trust me._

_ ~Midnight Colt_

"Midnight… Colt? What the buck?! Who the hoof is that?!" Greatly confused, I laid the note aside. The rumors hadn't said anything about the princes using an alternate name… so maybe I was safe. In any case I didn't have the willpower to deal with it tonight, so I would just sleep there.

After a while I began to drift off. As I closed my eyes I could've sworn I saw a handsome, dark blue stallion with a flowing, starry mane and tail smiling down on me.

"Come dear child, I'm the Prince of Dreams as well as the moon. I've come to explain everything to you."

Gently, I opened my eyes. In front of me was the same handsome stallion I'd seen just earlier. His kind face beamed and me, and I realized I was in a grassy glen rather than my room.

"So this is a dream then? And you're a prince huh? I knew I was going mad, but to create a new prince in my mind…." I sighed.

"Not a new prince, a reformed one. I'm Midnight Colt, but you might know me better as Prince Artemis. Like I said, I've come to explain." He smiled softly, seeing the confusion and fear on my face. "Tonight sees the beginning of the end; the very thing everypony has been waiting for. We will revolt, hundreds of us. I ask that you join us in our quest for freedom."

"But… if you really are the prince, you already rule. Why jeopardize that?" I ask in confusion.

He frowned, seeming ashamed and beaten down. "I have ruled terribly for many years, and I wish to fix that. I cannot undo what I have done, but I can still fight for the future." Looking me in the eye, he said gravely, "You have but a few minutes to decide. Will you join us or stay in the castle like a duchess while the rest of the nation suffers?"

Artemis had always been my favorite of the princes; he had always been the kindest and the most willing to accept ponies. But even so, he hadn't been much better than his brother and nephew. I glanced at him and the answer became clear.

"My parents died fighting for the freedom of Equestria. I owe it to them to fight. You're cause is noble, and I will join."

I was suddenly awoken from my dream by the shattering of glass. A red mare with a blonde mane stood over me in an instant.

"Are… are you going to hurt me?" I asked, scared silly.

"Eeyup. I sure am sorry lady." She turned around and kicked me in the head. I was stuffed into a bag as the world went black.


	2. My Little Recruit

"Macarena, was that completely necessary?"

"Ah'm… Ah'm sorry your highness but I had no idea she'd agreed to join us! Her bedchambers were the best access point in the buildin' for our spy to sneak in unnoticed. Plus we couldn't exactly leave **_two_** Dinin' Armours roamin' the castle could we? The other princes would surely have realized there was a plan in place and woulda foiled it."

My throbbing head struggled to process the words. _Highness? Spy? Plan? What a strange dream I must have had! Like there was some kind of uprising…._ A shock passed through me and my eyes flew open in a panic as I remembered what had happened.

"Oh, look! She's waking up!" A handsome stallion I remembered as Midnight Colt smiled at me. "Good morning!"

Nearby stood the mare that had bucked me earlier, looking smaller than I remembered. "Eeyup," she placed a hoof behind her yoked neck, "Ah sure am sorry 'bout buckin' y'all earlier. Didn't mean ta hurt a member a the cause, 'specially not a personal friend a Prince Midnight." She held out her hoof to me, a kind and country-girl smile on her face. "The name's Little Macarena, but most folk just call me Lil' Mac."

"Um… I'm Dining Armour. The royal bi-… actually… I'm not quite sure what I am anymore." I cast Midnight a questioning look.

"Why, the new recruit of course! You were the most sensible choice. All castle staff are given basic military training in case of extreme need, but you're the only one who bothers to take the optional refresher courses, so I know you can fight. I know your past and frequent your dreams, so I know you felt guilty not being part of a revolution already, which in turn meant I could be fairly certain you would join us." Midnight seemed proud of himself at this.

Cocking an eyebrow, Lil' Mac raised an interesting question. "Y'all were watching her dreams? Why in tarnation would y'all do somethin' like that?!"

The prince seemed embarrassed and answered her in a defensive tone. "I-It was for the good of the cause!"

"Don't mean y'all have ta visit more 'an a few times!"

"Cut it out!" I exclaimed. "I'm hurt, hungry and confused and you two are standing there arguing about my dreams! Now I don't mean to be rude but I'm sick of being more or less ignored! You two need to shape up and realize what matters at the moment isn't in the past but in the present and that you need to make things better for the future!" I hadn't even noticed that I'd not only stood up but had fully extended my wings and raised a front hoof off the floor in a somewhat girly yet commanding way.

Slowly, a smile spread across the prince's face. "Fantastic!" he practically yelled, "See Mac? I **_told_** you she'd be perfect!" He turned to me and I saw his face fall as he trained his eye on my flank. "Y-You don't have a…"

"Cutie mark? No, I don't. I was taken from the orphanage at too young an age to have gained one. So what? Is that going to be problem, soldier?"

I heard my words as if they were an echo. _Di… did I just call a prince "soldier?!"_

"Well," Mac reasoned, "It could draw some attention ta ya that y'all don't need as the leadin' officer."

"Don't be absurd, it'll be easy enough to fake. I just need some body paints and a simple sword-and-shield design and I can pull it off. Now, how to break it to the soldiers that their commanding officer is going to be a mare…," Midnight stroked his muzzle in contemplation.

"**_WHAT?!_**" My voice neared Royal Canterlot Voice volume. "**_SINCE WHEN DID I AGREE TO BE A COMMANDING OFFICER?! AND WHY SHOULD IT MATTER THAT I'M A MARE?! I'LL HAVE YOU KNOW I CAN TAKE ANY OF YOUR LOUSY SOLDIERS DOWN IN TWO_**… seconds… flat. What's come over me?"

"Your destiny is taking hold, showing the true colors you never had the chance to know you possessed. Now, on to matters that are actually important…," a slightly deep and very intimidating female voice spoke.

Panicking slightly, I looked around for the owner of that voice, and saw a terrifyingly beautiful unicorn mare step out of the shadows. Her coat was slate grey, and she wore menacing black plated armor from which her haunting black hair flowed, like Midnight's, as if in a non-existent wind. Her eyes seemed to burn into my very soul, their green and red colors striking fear into my heart with poisonous purple gasses spilling from their sides and setting off her red horn.

I shook my head. _Fear is just an emotion, _I thought, _an emotion you're meant to overcome._ Feigning boredom, I walked over and extended a hoof calmly. "I'm Dining Armour, but if these two are telling me the truth then most ponies will be calling me their commanding officer around here soon. And you are?"

She smiled, not evilly but genuinely, with pointed, carnivore-like teeth. "I like this one. Not many ponies would willingly approach me. I am Queen Symber of the Crystal Kingdom, though nowadays that dreadful Prince Tempo claims my throne." Never once did her eyes leave me, and even her firm hoofshake was a bit daunting.

Despite my quaking fear I managed to look her in the eye and smile. "Well, we'll just have to fix that won't we? It's a crying shame to see the wrong pony on the throne and I won't stand for it."

_What's going on? This is so unlike me… or… or is it? Maybe this is the side of me I kept hidden from everyone… even myself. _Cautiously, I let these strange feelings hit home and I felt only two things. Power and relief coursed through my veins in equal measure; I hadn't realized how tired I'd been, hiding my true self my whole life.

Midnight looked at me with sparkling eyes. "See? I told you she was the right pony for the job! Though we need to get her second in command and a sword to keep the stallions off her," here he moved my red bangs away from my aqua eyes, "With a face like that she'll definitely need them."

My newfound self quickly shook my head, sending two tones of red across my face. "This is war, any soldier that can't remember that will find themselves cleaning the bathrooms with a toothbrush," I looked at the stallion pointedly. "Don't think I can't handle myself. Just because I'm a mare doesn't mean I need somepony to protect me."

"Amen ta that, sister!" Lil' Mac exclaimed, now standing right beside me. "Ah think it's about time we got y'all some armor. Those soldiers ain't gonna listen ta ya 'less ya got armor on, trust me."

As I followed the farmpony from the small room I felt uneasy, as if I was being watched, but I brushed the thought aside. If I hadn't, I might have spotted the blue eyes floating in the shadows or heard the distinctly un-pony-like laughter as a ponyoid creature followed my every move.


	3. My Little Weapons

Swaggering into the armory, I looked around with a discerning eye. The breast plates around me were polished to perfection but riddled with dents and imperfections. Snorting, I turned away from them in disgust and moved further into the room, earning me a questioning look from Mac.

"Now what in tarnation is wrong with this here armor? Looks perfectly fine ta me!"

"Too many weak points a trained castle guard would pick up on in a second. The wearers would have to be extremely skilled to survive a battle in those. I'd suggest camouflaging them with mud and fake plants. It's stealthier and hides the weaknesses." Feeling confident, I continued looking at the armor until I finally found some I found satisfactory and tried it on. Miraculously, it fit my slender yet subtly muscled frame.

"Well, what da ya know? We've been tryin' ta find a pony that would fit that armor since we started organizin'! Didn't even think a putting it on a pegasus!" She seemed pleased with my choice and gave me another of her warm smiles.

Returning the beam, I studied the fit in the mirror. The gold offset my white coat and blue eyes, making me look equal parts fierce and beautiful.

"It's part of a set you know," said voices that seemed layered and dripped with masculinity as matching pieces of armor were magically attached to me. "You look _love_ly my dear."

Wings fully extended, I turned to confront my helpers, equally prepared to rip their faces off and to shake their hooves. One problem. Only one creature stood behind me, the King of the changelings. I knew who he was because he had once attempted to ruin Prince Tempo's wedding by stealing the bride under the Hate Prince's guise.

Knowing this likely pegged him as a good guy around here, I retracted my wings and nodded respectfully. "King Cocoon, it's been a long time."

"Have we… ah yes. I knew I recognized that pretty face; Dining Armour was it? The mare that caught the hearts of so many stallions in the castle. Hard to recognize you in all this armor, maybe you should take it off…," he moved closer as he said this and gently stroked my chin.

Shocked and disgusted, I promptly turned around and bucked him straight in the chest, finding myself oddly satisfied with the sickening crunch the action produced. Turning around, I saw that I'd knocked the king across the room and the sound had been caused by the crushing of a particularly weak piece of armor rather than his ribs.

Smirking cheekily, he strutted back over to me and leaned in close. "Nice try, but I defeated Solaris once. It'll take more than that to keep me down, **_Princess_**." That word, that one word, ran deep with mocking and sarcasm and sent rage coursing through my veins.

Acting scared, I lowered myself as if going into a bow. At the last second I used my knowledge of changelings to ram the top of my head into a weak point in his natural armor, effectively knocking all the air from his lungs. He fell to his knees as he gasped for air and I smiled cockily.

"If I were you, I'd say stay down like a good little king." I flipped my mane as I turned and strutted out of the room to where Mac was laughing hysterically at my victory.

Finally cracking up myself after processing what had just happened, I brohoofed her. We eventually noticed a copy of myself and Cocoon down the hall reenacting the scene silently before shape-shifting into changeling underlings and soundlessly laughing.

Still giggling, I managed to say, "Wow, that was pretty awesome wasn't it? I can't believe I actually did that!"

"Ah can! Prince Midnight's been talkin' 'bout how amazin' y'all are, an' Ah figure ya just proved 'im right."

"He said that? Huh, I never really thought I was all that good until I got here…," I trailed off as I heard a slight hoof fall behind me.

"Why, of course he said those things. Seems you've passed my little test with flying colors. At most I was expecting a hit to a leg joint, you really impressed me. I must say, I rather approve of Midnight's choice in officers." The cunning king was smiling warmly when I turned my head.

In response, I gave a cautious grin before saying, "Well that was without any weapons. If I'd had a sword or even just a dagger… well the changelings would need a new king. Speaking of which," I looked around, hoping to catch sight of a sign or something pointing me where I wanted to go, "where exactly is the weapons room? Makes sense to grab a knife or something at least before meeting the soldiers."

"Eeyup, it sure does! Ya wanna go down this hall an' ta your right, it's gonna be the first door on your left, Sugarcube. From there, our weapons pony'll help y'all out."

"Got it; thanks Mac!" Closing my eyes and humming one of my favorite songs, which just so happened to be about guns and war, I strode confidently down the hall. Perhaps a bit _too_ confidently though, as I soon ran into another pony head-on and we tumbled to the ground. The other pony landed somewhat on top of me but not enough to crush me.

Without looking up, I immediately began apologizing. "Oh, I'm so sorry I just..., I didn't know there was anyone else in this hallway and-"

"No, it's alright. It was my fault really; I should've been watching where I was going. Why can't I ever do anything right…?"

The words were said gently and quietly, yet in a deep voice. I looked up and saw none other than THE Trixter. Baby blue coat, eyes just the right shade of purple, wavy white mane, there was no mistaking it. This was the pony that had often put on magnificent magic shows for the kings, even performing age spells without any magical aid. Yet he'd always stayed so humble, insisting he was nothing special.

"No way!" I exclaimed, I was a pretty big fan of his. "You're awesome, Trixter! Wow, I wouldn't have thought I'd find you here!"

"U-Um, thanks," he was blushing a bit, "but I'm really not anything special. Just a stallion with some magic tricks and weapon knowledge." Suddenly, he blushed bright red as if realizing something and quickly scrambled to get off of me. "A-Anyway… you're Dining Armour right? I-I've seen you a few times while I was performing at the castle. You're also supposed to be the new leading officer, right? We should get you some weapons." He led me down the hall and to the very room I'd been trying to find.

It. Was. Beautiful. All around me were all kinds of weapons, from swords to spears and even guns, something I definitely hadn't expected to see. A tear found its way down my face as I looked around. Quickly, I galloped over to the pegasus-friendly weapons and began drooling over the wing-fitted guns. I didn't recognize any specific models, more than likely they were improvised guns, but I didn't care.

That was when something in the knives section caught my eye. Similar to the guns in terms of wing-fit, a rig lined with sharp knives that seemed detachable. Feeling oddly drawn to the weapon, I quickly fitted them to my wings and headed to the practice area.

Immediately, Trixter tried to give me instruction on using the knife thrower, but I ignored him, trying my own way even as he was telling me something completely different.

Suddenly, my vision was overtaken by a bloodied field, castle guards and rebel soldiers littered the ground. In the middle of it all were four ponies. Midnight and I were on one side, staring down fiercely at Solaris and Tempo. They were both on their knees and were looking back up at us with fear; they knew they were completely helpless in this situation.

My vision cut back to the present and I swung my wing out slightly with the intent to hit the target dead center.

The knives flew through the air silently and, surprisingly as it had been my first attempt, with deadly precision, hitting the practice dummy directly between the eyes.

Trixter's jaw practically hit the floor alongside my own as we stared incredulously at my work. "Di-Did I do that? I was just trying my own thing an-"

I was caught off as a faint glowing came from beneath my armor, right on my flank. Panicking slightly, I removed the plating at lightning speed to be confronted by a white pair of wings, outlined in deep red, lined with what looked like silvery feathers, but they ended in wicked points.

"M-My cutie mark…." I fought back my confusion, my pride, my tears, my joy, all of it and simply wrapped my neck around Trixter's in a pony's version of a hug. "Thank you."

"Y-You're… welcome?" I could tell he didn't really understand what was going on but I didn't offer an explanation, instead I backed away and got ready to throw a few more knives at the target. Paying special attention to my aim this time, I flicked my wing slightly and managed to hit all three main vital points (the brain, heart and lungs) with one throw.

"You showed me my calling. Saving the entirety of Equestria… don't act like you weren't the one who showed me all that." Calmly, I turned to him and smiled, but he only looked confused.

"I'm not acting…," he said seeming completely serious.

"Maybe you showed yourself, Dining." Midnight walked in, calm as ever, and looked right at me. "Time to meet your soldiers." With that his horn began to glow and I knew he was going to teleport us somewhere.

Then I was in a black, empty void….


End file.
